Did families of war dead have phones hacked?

The relatives of soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan have been warned that their phones may have been hacked by the private investigator working for the News of the World, according to tomorrow's Daily Telegraph.

The private phone numbers of the families of servicemen who died on the front line have been found in the files of Glenn Mulcaire, whose work is the focus of a police investigation involving 50 police officers.

By saying that there could be worse revelations to come, News International as good as invited rival journalists to contact anyone from the families of the war dead to the families of tsunami victims to see if they had been notified by the police that their numbers were on Glenn Mulcaire's little list.

A senior source at News International told me tonight: "The military is a cause central to the heart of News International. If this story is correct we are absolutely shocked and appalled that that tradition has been besmirched".

The News of the World and the Sun have prided themselves on their support for Help the Heroes, campaigns for the military covenant and other military causes.